Program overview

At a time of significant transition for the architectural profession, the M.Arch. program allows for full incorporation of the skills and knowledge critical to the 21st century architect. The program’s purpose is to produce broad-thinking architects well grounded in the principles and practices of sustainability who can apply their knowledge and talents to the architectural problems posed by the modern city.

The master of architecture program is designed for students with a broad range of interests and backgrounds who are interested in studying architecture at the graduate level, but whose undergraduate degrees were obtained in fields outside of architecture. 

The program’s curriculum has been shaped by the global emphasis of sustainability, factors that impact urbanism, and the hands-on application of the principles of design and technology on materials and construction.

Sustainability

With a global push for a more sustainable world, including buildings that use energy and environmental factors more efficiently to lessen an overall carbon footprint, the focus of many courses reflect the conditions of sustainable design and practice.

Urbanism

Because a degraded urban environment has grave implications for social, economic, cultural, and environmental health, the program pays particular attention to urban settings and urban principles. The complexity of the urban environment requires an interdisciplinary approach to architecture education – one that references economics, public policy, sociology, and regional culture. The program will focus on the practices and principles of preservation and adaptive reuse. The city of Rochester, New York, will serve as an active learning environment for students.

Integrated learning/Integrated practice

Like all strong design programs, the program’s core education will take place in the studio. However, our studio curriculum integrates construction technologies, material science, and mechanics into design. From the outset, students will approach design problems within teams, learning to value and leverage collective intelligence. The integrated learning model prepares students for the increasingly integrated practice of architecture, where integrated project delivery is fast becoming the dominant model, and architects are orchestrating teams of professionals from a variety of fields, including engineering, management, science, and computer science.

Curriculum

Students are required to complete 148 credit hours to successfully complete the program. Designed as a full-time program, courses will be offered on campus, primarily during the day.

The majority of the coursework is studio-based, with the exception of some elective and sustainability courses. In addition to three required sustainability courses, students will take one sustainability elective. All students will prepare a thesis in their last year. Students will take three graduate electives, drawn from courses offered by the colleges of Liberal Arts, Engineering, Applied Science and Technology, Imaging Arts and Sciences, and Business.

Admission requirements

To be considered for admission to the M.Arch. program, candidates must fulfill the following requirements:

• Hold a baccalaureate degree (other than a B.Arch.) from an accredited institution,
• Have an undergraduate cumulative GPA of B (3.0) or higher,
• Successful completion of at least one semester each of previous college-level course work
  in calculus (not pre-cal) and physics,
• Submit official transcripts (in English) of all previously completed undergraduate and graduate course work,
• Submit a one page personal statement explaining why you are interested in studying architecture at the graduate level.
• Submit the results of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE).
• Submit three letters of recommendation submitted directly to RIT via e-mail (from references directly) or in a sealed envelope, signed by the letter writer across the seal. (One from a current or former teacher or academic adviser; one from a current or former supervisor; and one from someone familiar with your creative abilities),
• Submit a portfolio of your best creative work, which may include sketches, constructions, graphics, and/or photographs (While student portfolios will likely not include examples of architectural drawing/design, evidence of
  creative talent will be important in determining admission).
• Applicants whose native language is not English must submit scores from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Minimum scores of 600 (paper-based), 250 (computer-based), and 100 (Internet-based) are required. 

Applicants who exceed the general admission requirements may be considered for conditional acceptance before GRE scores are available.

Portfolio requirements

All applications must be accompanied by a PDF digital portfolio. Print or bound portfolios or digital portfolios in formats other than PDF will not be accepted or reviewed. Please note, all PDF portfolios should be less than 6.0mb. Files larger than this will not be accepted or reviewed. In the event the  review committee requires additional information or higher resolution images, the applicant will be notified.

Guideline for portfolio preparation:

Image Quality: A medium quality image setting on a digital camera is sufficient. No images should be pixelated.

File Size: The total size must be 8.5x11” and cannot exceed 6.0mb. Alternatively you may use the PDF portfolio feature (found under FILE, in more recent versions of Acrobat) to create your portfolio. Again, total file size may not exceed  6.0mb.

Orientation: Landscape orientation is preferred.

Cropping: Crop out unnecessary objects from the images so that there are no distractions from work presented..

Image Enhancement: If the image files of your work are not accurate after photographing, image-editing software is allowed to correct the appearance of the files you are submitting. Please use caution. It is important to maintain the integrity of the original artwork. Images should be clear and free of
reflections or “hot spots.”

File Name: You may submit only one PDF file as your portfolio. It should follow this format: UARC_XX_LASTNAME.PDF, where XX is equal to the two year code for the academic year to which you are applying, 2011, for example would be 11, 2012 would be 12, etc. Enter your last name in all capital letters in place of LASTNAME. Do not enter given names or middle names in this field.

Submission. All PDF portfolio files must be submitted via email to gradapp@rit.edu. Include your name in the subject line of the email. Files delivered on CD/ROM or USB drives will not be reviewed or accepted.